It was a scorching hot night at Saint Andrew’s Hall on Wednesday, and that’ s not even counting the 100-plus degree temperature inside the venue. Toronto R&B act The Weeknd, in his Detroit debut, brought his sizzling show to the sold-out audience and left a memorable impression on the crowd. Up until a few months … Continue Reading →
This year, Detroit’s Movement festival made a conscious decision to ignore the current explosion in popularity of electronic dance music, or EDM, by shunning the top artists currently making waves in the scene. Chicago’s inaugural Spring Awakening festival did the opposite: The two-day festival, held June 16-17 at Soldier Field, was built as a shrine … Continue Reading →
Thursday night at the Fillmore Detroit, underground rap kingpin Tech N9ne brought his Hostile Takeover tour to the Fillmore Detroit. N9ne, one of the hardest working rappers in the business, was received warmly by the Juggalo-heavy Fillmore crowd. The Kansas City rapper has always been held in high regard by the Juggalos, and N9ne gave … Continue Reading →
I am a huge fan of Howard Stern. That’s why I cannot watch him on “America’s Got Talent.” Stern’s gig on “Talent” never sounded particularly enticing. The NBC variety show has always been a garbage dump of a TV show, with bottom-feeding celebrities (David Hasselhoff, Jerry Springer) and hack acts you wouldn’t even watch on … Continue Reading →
Rammstein knows how to make an entrance. The German industrial rockers took the stage at the Palace of Auburn Hills Sunday night carrying a flaming torch through the audience, walking down from the arena concourse through the crowd and onto the Palace floor. They marched slowly and deliberately across a catwalk that had been lowered … Continue Reading →
The 2Pac hologram stole the headlines at last weekend’s Coachella festival, but the virtual gangsta was but one small element in a multi-faceted three-day weekend that drew a record crowd of 85,000 fans per day to the Empire Polo Club in Indio, Calif. Here are the weekend’s highlights and lowlights, through the eyes of one … Continue Reading →
I heard Trey Songz’ 2010 hit with Nicki Minaj, “Bottoms Up,” on the radio the other day, and was struck by the sheer wizardry of Minaj’s cameo. In just under a minute, Minaj plays three different characters, barks at a suitor, orders a few drinks, shouts out Anna Nicole Smith and makes the convincing argument … Continue Reading →
Hard rock group the Pretty Reckless performed at Pontiac’s Crofoot Ballroom Tuesday, as part of the group’s Medicine Tour. Hey look, I went a whole sentence without mentioning Taylor Momsen! The Pretty Reckless is of course fronted by Momsen, the actress and former “Gossip Girl” starlet who deserves credit for going all the way with … Continue Reading →
When it’s time to we will always party hard. That was party rocker Andrew W.K.’s thesis statement 10 years ago on his debut album “I Get Wet,” and it was strong enough that a decade later he is still revered as a party god, doling out daily party tips to the next generation of partiers … Continue Reading →
The-Dream brought his Kill the Lights tour to Detroit’s Elysium Lounge Friday, and the hour-long performance marked the 34-year-old’s welcome return to the local performance stage. The-Dream, aka Terius Nash, has taken two years off from performing; it’s not easy to find time to perform when you’re writing hits for the entire pop world. Detroit … Continue Reading →